30 Crazy Animal Facts That Will Change the Way You Look at Animals Forever

When it comes to crazy animal facts, we have the best, and simply the greatest list that you will ever need. In fact, there is only one place that you need to look, right here of course. So what exactly is it that makes this list of crazy animal facts so great? Not many people will know all of them, until now. So go forth and discover the crazy and amazing animal kingdom.

1 The Origin Of The Word Gorilla Means Tribe Of Hairy Women

Before we get to the origin of the meaning of gorilla and its unflattering association with women we will share some other fascinating facts about gorillas.
The largest primate in the world is the gorilla. An adult male usually weighs between 135 to 180 kilograms (400 to 400 lb) and stand a little shorter than a man at between 1.7 to 1.8 metres (5.6 to 5.9 ft) tall. The arm span of the male stretches as far as 2.6 metres (8.5 ft). The males are known as silverbacks due to the silver hair that grows on their backs.

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ow they are pretty interesting facts, but have you ever wondered the origin of the name gorilla and what it means? It’s very unflattering, to say the least. Gorillas got their name from American Physiciannd missionary Thomas Staughton Savage and naturalist Jeffries Wyman. Gorilla was derived from Greek Γόριλλαι (Gorillai), meaning “tribe of hairy women”.

2 Giraffe’s Sleep For Only 4.6 Hours A Day

Question. How long do giraffes sleep a day? It’s a relatively straight forward question, and something that now has your attention and thoughts. So do you know how long do giraffes sleep a day?

The worlds tallest mammal, the giraffe, actually sleeps for only a very short period of time each day. Unlike other animals such as cats, sloths and koalas which require huge amounts of sleep, the giraffe only needs on average about 4.6 hours per day, the majority of which occurs at night. But now you are probably wondering how does a giraffe sleep? A giraffe will occasionally sleep while standing, but more often than not it will sleep laying down. While it is sleeping in a laying position it will bend its neck back and rest its head on either its hip or thigh.

Here are a few more interesting facts about giraffes.

Giraffes stand between 4.3 to 5.3 metres tall.

A male can weigh up to 1930 kilograms while a female can weigh as much as 1180 kilograms.

The heart can weigh up to 10 kilograms and measure up to 60 centimetres long.

The blood pressure of a giraffe is about double that of any other land animal.

The neck of a giraffe accounts for about half of its height.

It can consume on average around 29 kilograms of leaves and twigs each day.

Despite their long necks, they have the same number of vertebra as all other animals.

3 The Main Cause Of Elephant Deaths Is Starvation

Elephants are the largest land animals in the world, and most elephants live for about 65 years. They have been the target of hunting for their ivory for centuries and their numbers are dwindling. The hazards many wild elephants face are poachers and land-mines from conflicts. In other words, us. But there is a far more common cause of death for elephants, and it is starvation.

When elephants die it is rarely from poor health or old age. They usually starve to death. This is because elephants replace their teeth 6 times throughout their lifetime. Elephants have 4 molars. When the front two wear down they fall out and the two behind move forward and two new molars emerge at the back of their mouth. When all of their teeth fall out they will starve to death, usually around the age of 65.

4 There Are Giant Fluorescent Pink Slugs In Australia

It is well known that the animals in Australia are exotic and different to most of the other animals in the world. That list of strange animals just grew by one. A recently discovered slug at Mount Kaputar, near Narrabri in New South Wales is a bright fluorescent pink and can grow up to 20 centimetres (8 inches) long. So not only does it appear that Australia has a pink lake but also pink slugs.

It is believed they are a remnant from millions years ago when much of Australia’s eastern seaboard was dense rainforest. They have been able to survive in this usually dry environment due to a volcanic eruption around 17 million years ago that allowed them to survive in a hidden, moist habitat.

The slugs are genetically distinct being restricted to the mountain top that covers an area roughly 10 kilometres by 10 kilometres (6.2 miles by 6.2 miles). Following the discovery the area has been declared a endangered ecological community, granting it the highest level of protection from development and intrusion.

5 Adult Luna Moths Have No Mouth Because Their Purpose In Life Is To Breed

The adult luna moth doesn’t have a mouth. It wasn’t always that way though. While it was a caterpillar it had a mouth and munched its way merrily along until it had to form a cocoon to become an adult. So imagine its shock when it discovers what has actually happened to its body once it emerges.

After it emerges from its cocoon one of the many changes the luna moth experiences from caterpillar to moth is a loss of its mouth. Its wings are also weak and small, requiring it to pump body fluid into them to enlarge, then wait for several hours for them to harden up. Because the adult luna moth has no mouth, they can’t even complain to anyone, or celebrate with a meal or a drink at the local bar.

It’s really depressing really. The sole purpose of an adult luna moth is to breed and then die about a week later from starvation.

6 Cats Can Not Taste Sweet Things

Cats can not taste sweet things. We are serious here. No cats, be they big or small, cute or scary, can taste anything sweet. You might be thinking that we are mad here, especially if you have a cat that seems to love the taste of milk, but scientific evidence has shown beyond a doubt that cats can not taste sweet. And this is why.

A long time ago cats could taste things that were sweet. But for some reason, the gene that is responsible for detecting the taste of sweetness, was turned off, or lost. The thing is, once it is gone, it is gone for ever. But what about the cats that do eat things that are sweet, such as milk, cake and ice cream?

The most likely answer is that they are eating them for the fat content. Fat can be stored by the cat and used later during periods where they can’t find any food.

As for tasting sweet things, cats are missing out on something that is very beneficial to all living animals. As taste is the final sense that can alert us if we should be placing something into our bodies, it is pretty important. Most poisonous foods are bitter, and that alerts us not to consume it and possibly kill ourselves. Sweet foods on the other hand are high in calories, which was hugely beneficial to ancient man, and all creatures great and small.

7 Sharks Have Growth Rings

Not only do sharks have growth rings, these same growth rings on sharks can be used to tell just how old the individual shark is. To me this came as a bit of a surprise, especially considering that I only ever thought that trees could be aged in such a way. But it turns out that this is not that rare a thing in marine animals.

To determine the age of many marine animals you generally count growth rings that are on their teeth, scales or ear bones. Apart from the ear bone, aging these animals doesn’t result in killing the beast. To get the age of a shark you have to kill it and then count the rings on its vertebrae. However, the shark growth rings will not give the the life expectancy of a shark.

8 African Grey Parrots Are As Smart As A 5 Year Old Child

Did you know some parrots have the intelligence of a 5 year old child? It’s true. Studies have been carried out and some parrots can do simple math and read. African Grey Parrots are extremely talkative, sensitive and intelligent. They seem to exhibit reasoning which most animals in the animal kingdom can not do. Many people regard African Grey as being “high strung and neurotic”, but if helped to feel safe can be one of the best companions you can get.

9 Guinea Pig Popcorning Is A Move That Guinea Pigs Make

Guinea pigs are a popular household pet, despite them being a rodent. They are native to South America where they were originally domesticated. Before European expansion into the Americas, many South American cultures used guinea pigs for food, religious rituals, healing and gift exchanges. After the European conquest of the region they were taken back to Europe where they were used as an exotic pet. In more recent times they have been used in medical and cosmetic testing, coining the phrase “be a guinea pig”. Testing is pretty mean, but this is cool. Have you heard of guinea pig popcorning?

Guinea pig popcorning is a real thing. It has nothing to do with the popular, and if purchased from a cinema, over priced snack. It is a behaviour. Popcorning is when they hop in the air, running around, turning quickly and performing the jump again. This action can be done repeatedly. It is often seen in young guinea pigs when they are happy, excited or playful. Older guinea pigs often exhibit this trait, but don’t jump as high.

10 Goats, Sheep, Octopus And Toads Have Rectangular Pupils

You may not have ever noticed this, but goats, along with sheep, octopus and toads have rectangular pupils. While many sources will say that these animals have rectangular eyes it is only the pupil that is rectangular in shape.

The reason these animals have rectangular pupils is because they are an animal of prey. If their pupil is rectangular, not round or a vertical slit as in snakes, cats and crocodiles, it gives them a wider field of view. This wider field of view helps them to avoid being a predators lunch time meal.